Sandboxie: Stack-based Buffer Overflow
CVE-2026-34459 is a high-severity stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability in Sandboxie from Sandboxie-plus, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 8.8 out of 10. It can be exploited with local access to the system by an attacker with a low-privileged account, without any action from a user. Affected Sandboxie versions: < 1.17.3. The record does not name a fixed version, so check the vendor advisory. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.14% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.
High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.
What to do
- Check which version of Sandboxie you run against the affected versions below, and install the vendor's latest release.
- Read the advisory on github.com for workarounds and exact fixed builds.
Affected products and versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sandboxie-plus | Sandboxie | < 1.17.3 | Not stated |
Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.
How the severity score breaks down
- Attack vector
- LocalThe attacker needs local access or must trick a user into running something.
- Attack complexity
- LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
- Privileges required
- LowA basic user account is enough.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Scope
- ChangedThe attack can reach beyond the vulnerable component into other systems.
- Confidentiality
- HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
- Integrity
- HighData or code can be modified at will.
- Availability
- HighThe component can be taken down completely.
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H. Scored by NVD.
| Scoring system | Score | Severity | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 4.0 | 8.8 | High | CNA (github.com) |
| CVSS 3.1 | 8.8 | High | NVD |
Official description
Sandboxie-Plus is an open source sandbox-based isolation software for Windows. In versions 1.17.2 and earlier, the SbieSvc proxy service's GetRawInputDeviceInfoSlave handler contains two vulnerabilities that can be chained for sandbox escape. First, when a sandboxed process sends an IPC request with cbSize set to 0, up to 32KB of uninitialized stack memory from the service process is returned, leaking return addresses and stack cookies which bypass ASLR and /GS protections. Second, the handler performs a memcpy with an attacker-controlled length without verifying it fits within the 32KB stack buffer, enabling a stack buffer overflow. By chaining the information leak with the overflow, a sandboxed process can execute a ROP chain to achieve SYSTEM privilege escalation, even from a Security Hardened Sandbox. Hardware-enforced shadow stacks (Intel CET) prevent the ROP chain execution but do not mitigate the information leak. This issue has been fixed in version 1.17.3.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Stack-based Buffer Overflow
The product writes past the end of a buffer that was allocated on the stack.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- Use automatic buffer overflow detection mechanisms that are offered by certain compilers or compiler extensions. Examples include: the Microsoft Visual Studio /GS flag, Fedora/Red Hat FORTIFY_SOURCE GCC flag, StackGuard, and ProPolice, which provide various mechanisms including canary-based detection and range/index checking. D3-SFCV (Stack Frame Canary Validation) from D3FEND discusses canary-based detection in detail.
- Use an abstraction library to abstract away risky APIs. Not a complete solution.
- Implement and perform bounds checking on input.
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: poc, automatable: no, technical impact: total).
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
References
Advisories
- github.com/sandboxie-plus/Sandboxie/security/advisories/GHSA-7cpc-5hv7-rfmhExploit, Mitigation
Other vulnerabilities in Sandboxie
- 7.7 High severity
- 7.0 High severity
- 8.8 High severity
- 7.8 High severity
- 7.8 High severity
- 8.8 High severity
Recent Stack-based Buffer Overflow vulnerabilities
- 8.3 High severity
- 8.6 High severity
- 8.8 High severity
- 10.0 Critical severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 10.0 Critical severity
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